As Andrew Schifmiller, the CEO of BioHug Technologies, explained, “The Bio Hug Vest is based on the concept of the application of deep hug-like pressure for calming. It’s a well-known and well-established concept, especially in occupational therapy.”

He explained that the BioVest Hug constantly varies the stimulus it gives “so that the body doesn’t get too used to it too quickly, as is the problem with similar vests that are based on weights.”

Schifmiller noted that while the BioHug Vest does not intend to replace real hugs, some people with autism “find human hugs difficult to bear, so this in some cases gives them the pressure that they might otherwise have gotten from a human hug in a way that’s more acceptable to them.”